Faster

Having been a motorcyclist for a number of years I've avoided the world of MotoGP. Likely more because I didn't know anything about it and spurned it for the same reasons I don't watch NASCAR or Formula 1 racing. Let's face it, until Tom Cruise used Nicole Kidman's leg to explain drafting, well, 'Days of Thunder' did teach me about drafting.

There are lots of subtle and unknown things happening in MotoGP. Riding a motorcycle and understanding motorcycle racing is about as distant as eating and being a fine chef. So, here's a great way to learn about this fascinating sport, its superstars, and perhaps why they do it. Besides, its great fun to watch, lots of ooohs and ahhhhs!

The fact that there are so few good motorcycle movies makes "FASTER" difficult to rate. If you compare this movie to dreck like "Torque" or "Biker Boyz", it's an absolute 10. If you compare it to the obvious choice "On Any Sunday", the movie is good but it leaves you feeling like it could have been a little bit better.

It's more or less a documentary of the top motorcycle road racing series in the world, MotoGP. The movie focuses primarily on four different riders over the course of the 2001 and 2002 seasons. The narration by Ewan McGregor is excellent, and the racing footage (a mix of shots filmed for the movie and archival race coverage) is fabulous. The interviews with former world champions are entertaining and educational.

However, the way the movie tends to jump around a bit might confuse people who aren't already fans of the sport, a problem that detracts from the excellence of the movie. Basically, you should watch it, but if you're not already a MotoGP fan maybe you should watch it with one so they can explain.

I got to see a sneak peek of this film at a little motorcycle rally in Texas in Nov. 2003. The soundtrack, opening credits and racing action in the first half the film are excellent. As the interviews go on in the latter part of the film it drags a bit, but the insight into the strategies and politics of racing at this level still made it interesting. The action-packed editing of all this racing, sliding, flipping and crashing crammed into one film is unbeatable.

Because of the European flavor of Moto-GP, the choice of using Ewan McGregor (with his British accent) as narrator was appropriate. I hear he is an avid rider as well.

Definitely worth seeing on a big screen if it shows near you and renting once available. As soon as it goes on sale, I'm buying the DVD!

For any motorcycle racing addict the 103 minutes for which this runs is just way too short.It does have a bit of the "all hail Rossi" about it but why not? After all he's probably the greatest racer that's been around for at least the last 50 years and that includes Agostini,Sheene,Doohan etc etc.Biaggi has simply never been in the same class.Even if Max was as good as he thinks he is he still couldn't beat Rossi on equal equipment.The only rider I've seen who Rossi might have had a problem with was Joey Dunlop and he definitely would have had a major problem beating Joey if they could have raced against each other at the Isle of Man.

I have been a motorcyclist most of my life, and have ridden coast to coast, and everywhere in between, during the past 10 years. Back in the late 1990s our local cable carried AMA Supersport 600 and Superbike racing, and occasionally Grand Prix motorcycle racing. I got to know many of those motorcycle warriors through that venue -- Miguel DuHamel, Doug Chandler, Mick Doohan, and the youngsters like the Hayden brothers. The racing was always exciting, and I did my own much lower speed simulations on my VFR750, or my wife's CBR600, but have come to realize that racing is NOT for the streets, a message played clearly in this movie "Faster."

"Faster" focuses exclusively on World Grand Prix racing, the now-defunct 500cc strokers, and the newer 4-stroke liter bikes. Primarily seasons 2000 through 2004, and featuring the newest wave of great riders, like Valentino Rossi, the best of the bunch, and his chasers like Biaggi, Macoy, and others, including homeboy Colin Edwards from up the road in Conroe. This film is not just about the races themselves, but also goes often behind the scenes to show us what goes into development of these race bikes, to make them go faster and faster each year. Narrated comfortable by Ewan McGregor, a very nice DVD for motorcycle racing fans.